Les Halles Cookbook

To all those faint of heart, prudish ninnies who expect niceties and coddling, be forewarned Les Halles by Anthony Bourdain is not a book for you… If however, you possess both the desire to cook good bistro food and an ounce of humour, then immediately pick up a copy and you’ll be rewarded with a genuinely fine collection of classic bistro recipes—110 in all—compiled and penned by a surprisingly adept (if somewhat prickly – Bourdain could teach Gordon Ramsey a few choice insults for aspiring chefs) and certainly personal guide.

Prior to gaining fame as the bestselling author of Kitchen Confidential (and subsequent Food Network shows) Anthony Bourdain paid his dues behind the stoves of a first rate New York Bistro, this collection is his homage to the excellent food that comes out of their kitchen. What he may lack in tact and refinement he sure makes up for it with his unabashed love of a good meal.

The photographs are a gritty glimpse into a real restaurant kitchen, and those who cook and showcase the food not to perfection—but how it ought to look when we set it on the table. There is not a recipe here that doesn’t get the taste buds flowing. Never before has there been a restaurant cookbook as real, as satisfying, and as useful.